HOLYROOD'S Justice Committee has asked ministers to report back on their powers to appoint an independent investigator to look into the Megrahi conviction for the Lockerbie bombing.

The move, which stops short of the full demand for a public inquiry sought in a petition by the Justice for Megrahi campaign, keeps the issue going,

The committee also asked what resources were being committed to investigating the allegations of the Justice for Megrahi Campaign, whether there was a full on-going investigation and whether the Crown Office had actually instructed the police to carry out inquiries.

Each of these demands were seen as a way of keeping the pressure up for the issue to be investigated.